Jurgen Klopp broke Liverpool hearts in January when he announced his decision to quit at the end of the season after nearly nine years in charge on Merseyside.
Pep Lijnders has already confirmed he’s leaving Liverpool when Jurgen Klopp does – despite the Reds squad reportedly wanting him to take the top job.
Alan Brazil and Dean Saunders claimed on talkSPORT they have behind-the-scenes information that the Liverpool players want Klopp’s current assistant to become boss when the German walks at the end of the season.
But Lijnders has already addressed the possibility of staying on at Anfield after Klopp leaves, saying: “Nobody will replace Jurgen. I was clear, to be honest, when we had the talk a long time ago – for me it was clear and it made it easier for me.
“We knew in the summer, ‘OK we are going towards the end of this project’. It’s too much about me… we play in a final in 48 hours. I understand, so I think I have given answers in interviews.
“I always got offers and my heart says yes, but my loyalty to Mike [Gordon] and Jurgen said no. So we agreed to finish this project together and it is the right way to do it.
“They will find a new coach with ideas and I am excited to manage to find the right club. But until the last final of the season, I am focused on Liverpool and that is why we have agents, no?”
Klopp broke Liverpool hearts in January when he announced his decision to quit at the end of the season after nearly nine years in charge on Merseyside. He cited exhaustion and an inability to do the job to the best of his ability as driving factors in his decision to quit.
Brazil said of the Liverpool situation talkSPORT: “I am told the players wouldn’t mind the number two, Pep taking over.” Saunders added: “I heard that as well. At least Lijnders knows what’s going on there. It’s difficult, who do you give the job to? That club is that big.”
Liverpool hired Lijnders back in 2014 and he initially worked alongside former boss Brendan Rodgers. The Dutchman remained at the club when Klopp took over a year later but parted company with the Reds in 2017 to manage NEC in the Netherlands.
After an unsuccessful year in the managerial hot seat, Lijnders returned to Anfield to work under Klopp again and played a key role in Liverpool winning both Champions League and Premier League titles.
